Mail metering systems often use one or more postage meters connected to a computer system such as a personal computer. Most generally, the meters frank mail pieces provided by a user by applying an indicia representing postage funds stored in a postal security device. In some systems, the postal security device may be implemented in or incorporate a local general- or special-purpose computer. During operation of the meter, data is transferred between the meter and the computer. The data typically includes account information, such as the various financial accounts or department labels into which postage amounts are allocated as they are used by the meter, and transaction amounts, such as the amount of postage applied in each transaction. Account administration, such as the specific assignment of transactions into accounts, may be performed at the attached computer or directly at the meter.
For the cases where account assignment occurs at the meter, it is important that the meter is provided access only to validated postage accounts. To accomplish this, the computer validates one or more accounts that the user is allowed to choose at the meter, and provides only validated account information to the meter. In a configuration where multiple computers are used, each computer typically maintains a separate local database of account information. Each local database may be synchronized with, and/or data replicated from, other local databases or a remote database, such as a central database that is managed by the owner or provider of the meters, or another central database. For example, multiple databases at each computer may be connected to an intranet, which allows one or more remote “administrator” computers to access, consolidate, and report upon the data that exists in the remote database or each of the individual local databases. The central database at an administrator computer also may communicate and/or synchronize with a remote data center. A system that uses multiple computers, each having a local database that stores account information for one or more postal meters, may be referred to as a distributed environment.